Why Experimentation Designers Make Better User Experience Designers
Nima Yassini
Digital Entrepreneur | Investor | Advisor specialising in Growth & digitisation at scale, experimentation, CRO and e-commerce
I take pride in having started in the UX industry when it was just emerging in Australia. Today, User Experience (UX) designers play a pivotal role in the success of a product.
Over the past 12 years, I have found myself delving deeper into the world of experimentation and its impact on UX/UI.?The question it raises is: Do experimentation UX/UI designers make better designers than traditional UX/UI designers?
In this article, I want to explore how experimentation designers are uniquely equipped to create superior user experiences. Here are four reasons why I believe designers with an experimentation background make better designers:
1. Data-driven Decision-making:
Experimentation designers are intimately familiar with data analysis and testing methodologies. They rely on quantitative and qualitative data to inform their design decisions and continuously improve the user journey. UX designers can greatly benefit from this data-driven approach. By incorporating Conversion Rate Optimisation (CRO) principles into their process, UX designers can make informed decisions based on user feedback and performance metrics.
Data-driven decision-making helps both experimentation strategies and UX designers identify pain points and areas for improvement. This shared approach enhances the iterative design process, leading to more effective and user-friendly solutions. As a result, experimentation designers can leverage their expertise in data analysis to fine-tune the user experience and drive better outcomes.
2. Results-based Learning:
Experiments allow designers to compare different versions of an experience to determine which one performs better in terms of the outcome being measured. This practice encourages continuous experimentation and refinement, which is valuable in the world of UX design.
By constantly refining design elements based on user feedback and data, they can create user experiences that evolve and improve over time. Experimentation designers, well-versed in these practices, can seamlessly integrate them into the UX design process, leading to more agile and user-centric solutions.
In addition, because experimentation designers know the results of their work, they can build a bank of understanding of what works for customers and what does not. In traditional design, most UX designers design, deliver, and move on, often unaware of the real-life impact of their work. Therefore, they may not learn from the past to perfect the future.
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3. Macro vs. Micro Change:
Most experiments look at incremental changes in experiences. This allows the strategist and designer the ability to understand what in the experience is driving the change in customer behaviour. This focus on micro-engagement helps designers better understand what customers want.
Because most traditional designers focus on wholesale changes, i.e., changing the full experience, they do not know what has truly changed the customer experience. They understand the new experience is better than the last one, but not what element or copy tweak is the main cause.
By understanding these micro changes, experimentation designers have a true advantage in knowing what is causing the desired outcomes.
4. A Deep Understanding of Psychology and Persuasion:
Experimentation designers are often well-versed in the psychology of persuasion and behavioural economics, as these disciplines are essential for optimising conversion rates. Understanding how users think, make decisions, and respond to various design elements is critical for conversion success.
Most traditional UX designers understand psychological principles; the only difference between a traditional UX designer and an experimentation designer is the data that helps them validate what psychological principle has quantifiably driven a change in behaviour.
When experimentation designers transition into UX design, they bring this expertise with them. They can apply psychological principles to create user experiences that resonate with and positively influence users. This knowledge of human behaviour can be invaluable in crafting interfaces that are not only visually appealing but also persuasive and intuitive.
In Conclusion:
In the fast-paced digital world, user experience is a critical factor that can determine the success or failure of a website or application. While both experimentation designers and traditional User Experience (UX) designers play essential roles in enhancing the online user experience, there is a compelling case for why experimentation designers can excel in the field of UX design.
In essence, they are creating a new wave of designers, which I like to call Experience Optimisers. Their shared focus on user-centred design, data-driven decision-making, optimising for user satisfaction, A/B testing, and a deep understanding of psychology and persuasion make Experience Optimisers well-suited to creating superior experiences.
That's an incredible resource you're sharing! ?? As Nelson Mandela said, "Education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world." Your contribution is truly empowering individuals to learn and grow. Keep shining! ??? #LifelongLearning
?? get >15% revenue growth from CX & Experimentation
10 个月Great article, Nima! Because you mention micro vs macro changes: how do you address the common prejudice that AB testing and expiration only leads to small improvements while we are also free to change bigger things and test them?
Lead UX Designer | MSc in Human Computer Interaction with Ergonomics | Championing Human-Centered Design | UX Design & Strategy
10 个月Thanks for positing this. Really interesting points! I would argue though that we still need traditional designers focusing on the wider picture. So the holistic view and full journey end to end. The issue with experimenting on one feature or small change is you’re not looking at the whole journey to understand how the user is interacting with the website and the whole user experience. The question is how do these 2 designers work within the same organisation?
VP of Pricing & Monetization at Trustpilot | ex-McKinsey, Optimizely
10 个月Absolutely agreed, Nima. Although there is one caveat! Some of these experimentation designers love to talk about their designs being "experiment informed", which tends to boils down to "I ran a test once, so even my gut feel counts as data driven"